Under the BNSS limitation provision, the relevant endpoint is ordinarily the filing of the complaint under section 223 or the recording of information under section 173. It is not simply the later date of the chargesheet or the Magistrate's cognizance order. First identify the applicable offence, punishment and procedural law. Then calculate the period with the statutory starting point, exclusions and any extension decision.
Which dates should I put on one page?
Collect the alleged offence date, the date it became known if discovery was later, the date the offender's identity became known if that was initially unknown, and the complaint or information-recording date. Add the chargesheet and cognizance dates so the sequence is visible, but do not substitute them for the relevant statutory endpoint.
Attach the dated records rather than using recollection. If the FIR refers to an earlier written report, include that report and its receipt. The lawyer needs to determine what was legally recorded and when. A dispute about an ante-dated document is an evidentiary issue requiring its own material, not a licence to choose the most favourable date.
Does every criminal offence have a three-year limit?
No. Section 514(2) BNSS gives different periods for specified punishment bands.
| Maximum punishment for the relevant offence | Period under section 514(2) |
|---|---|
| Fine only | Six months |
| Imprisonment not exceeding one year | One year |
| Imprisonment exceeding one year but not exceeding three years | Three years |
This chapter does not impose a general three-year cutoff on offences punishable above that band. Where offences may be tried together, section 514(3) refers to the offence carrying the more severe or most severe punishment. Special statutes can require separate analysis. Calling the incident "minor" does not decide its legal classification.
When does the period start?
Section 515 ordinarily starts it on the offence date. Where the offence was unknown to the aggrieved person and police, it addresses the first relevant knowledge. Where the offender's identity was unknown, it addresses when identity became known. The provision uses the earlier applicable knowledge of the specified person or police and excludes the starting day from computation.
Identify the evidence supporting a later discovery date. A bare statement that the complainant noticed the matter recently is not the same as an established chronology. Equally, do not assume the physical transaction date must always start the clock where the statute provides a knowledge-based alternative.
What time can be excluded?
Section 516 covers specified situations, including a good-faith prosecution pursued diligently in a court unable to entertain it for jurisdictional or similar reasons, an injunction or stay on institution, and time required for statutory notice or sanction. It also addresses the offender's absence from India or avoidance of arrest by absconding or concealment.
Those are fact-sensitive exclusions. Obtain the relevant orders, sanction correspondence or travel record and calculate the days expressly. A delay in completing investigation is not itself a universal exclusion. Section 517 deals with expiry on a closed-court day, and section 518 deals with continuing offences. Continuing consequences of an old act do not automatically establish that the offence itself continues.
Can the court still entertain a late case?
Yes. Section 519 permits cognizance beyond the period where the court is satisfied that delay was properly explained or that doing so is necessary in the interests of justice. Obtain any application and order addressing that provision. Do not present the calendar calculation as conclusive while ignoring an extension decision.
A useful submission sets out the offence, maximum punishment, start date, relevant filing or recording date, claimed exclusions and the reason an extension is disputed. That gives the court a calculation it can examine.
What should I do before asking for quashing?
Have the lawyer check whether the matter is governed by the BNSS or saved CrPC procedure under section 531. An old pending case does not switch regimes merely because its chargesheet arrived later. The correct forum and remedy also depend on the stage and existing orders.
The quashing guide explains the wider remedy, while our answer on civil and criminal cases distinguishes their clocks. For this objection, the essential document is a supported limitation calculation, not a statement that the police took too long.